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Alucard Dooku
Jard Dooku more commonly referred to as just Dooku or Count Dooku was a Jedi Master who fell to the dark side of the Force. Born on the planet Serenno, he was the heir to vast wealth and the noble title of Count. Dooku was taken by the Jedi Order as a child and apprenticed to Thame Cerulian. As a Jedi Knight, Dooku was sent on a mission to Kiffu to settle a dispute between the Kiffar and the Anzati invaders. While there, he fell in love with one of the natives named Galilahi Vos and unknowingly fathered a daughter with her. His daughter would later go on to have a child of her own, the infamous Jack Sparrow. As a Jedi Master, he fathered yet another child, this time with his great love and fellow Jedi, Jocasta Nu. Shortly after, he took Qui-Gon Jinn as his first Padawan, and later trained Tol Skorr and Komari Vosa. Dooku was a respected instructor in the Jedi Temple and one of the most renowned swordsmen in the galaxy. Only Masters Yoda and Mace Windu were considered to have fought on equal terms with him. Dooku spent nearly seventy years as a Jedi, but a disastrous battle on Galidraan as well as the death of his former apprentice Qui-Gon shook his faith in the Order and the Galactic Republic. In 5 BJP, he left the Jedi Order along with many other discontented Jedi and reclaimed his birthright as Count of Serenno as well as his vast fortune. Later that year, Dooku appeared on Raxus Prime and helped forge ties between the Separatists and planets discontented with the Republic, and became the leader of the Confederacy of Independent Systems. As the political leader of the Confederacy, Dooku led the organization against the Republic in a conflict that would become known as the Clone Wars. He recruited and trained five of his greatest warriors to lead the Separatist Droid Army: Durge, the brutish Gen'Dai bounty hunter; Joclad Dooku, Dooku's protégé and son as well as his Dark Jedi apprentice; Asajj Ventress, another one of Dooku's Dark Jedi apprentice's; General Sev'rance Tann, Commander and Dark Acolyte; and General Grievous, the infamous Jedi slaying cyborg and droid leader. The war culminated in a great battle over the Republic capital of Coruscant. In a duel aboard the Separatist flagship Invisible Hand, Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker defeated Dooku. Skywalker then executed the dismembered and helpless Dooku at the instigation of Chancellor Palpatine. Biography Early Life Jard Dooku was born on the planet Serenno into a noble, wealthy family. His parents were stern, but proud of his Force abilities, and willingly let him join the Jedi Order when he was twelve. Unlike most Jedi Initiates, he was aware of his origins and felt driven to prove himself worthy of them. By far the swiftest learner in his year, Dooku was particularly apt at telekinesis and combat games such as push-feather. He could easily move objects with the Force by the age of thirteen. Before he became a Padawan, Dooku studied diplomacy and signed up for special tutorials in Senate procedure. In 66 BJP, Master Thame Cerulian chose Dooku as his apprentice as soon as Dooku turned fourteen. Cerulian sat on the Jedi High Council, and was renowned as a historian. Dooku had several friends when he was younger, including fellow Initiates Jorus C'baoth, Jocasta Nu and Lorian Nod as well as alien senatorial aide Eero Iridian. However, Lorian Nod was jealous of Dooku being chosen as a Padawan before him. Insecure about his future as a Jedi, Nod stole the Dark Holocron from the Jedi Archives, trying to gain an edge over other prospective Padawans. Dooku visited Nod's room to talk his friend into returning the holocron, but the pair were interrupted by Master Oppo Rancisis, who discovered the stolen item. Nod implicated Dooku in the theft, and Dooku was too shocked to contradict him. Nod later visited Dooku, and asked his friend to cover for him, but Dooku was still angry with Nod and did not give him any assurances. The next day, the two were on opposite sides in an urban tracking exercise and ended up brawling with each other. After Yoda broke up the fight, Dooku and Nod were examined separately before the Jedi Council. Dooku told the truth about the theft of the holocron, and Nod was cast out of the Jedi Order. The pair became bitter enemies. Even though he studied under Cerulian, Yoda took a particular interest in the young Dooku and was frequently his adviser and confidant. The Jedi Master, however, was equally quick to point out Dooku's flaws when necessary. He also assisted in Dooku's lightsaber training as a Padawan. Building from this foundation, Dooku became an accomplished duelist with the weapon. In his later years, few Jedi Masters were considered equal to Dooku's skill with a lightsaber. Under Cerulian's tutelage, Dooku became a powerful Jedi. He was the most gifted Padawan Cerulian had ever seen, and Dooku learned much from his Master. As he grew older and continued to develop, Dooku became an outspoken individual who had strong views about the systemic corruption that plagued the Galactic Republic. Jedi Knight and Master Dooku became a Jedi Knight in his early twenties, and around this time, he began a secret love affair with fellow Jedi, Jocasta Nu, that would last for years to come. In 60 BJP, the Anzati invaded the planet Kiffu, and Dooku along with a Jedi strike team were sent to settle the dispute. While there, he fell in love with one of the natives, a widow named Galilahi Vos. Through the course of their brief relationship, Dooku unknowingly fathered a daughter with her. His daughter would later go on to have a child of her own, the infamous Jack Sparrow. In 40 BJP, Jocasta fell pregnant and took an extended leave of absence from the Jedi Order, leaving only Dooku and a few others with knowledge of the pregnancy, including his former Jedi Master, Yoda. Knowing the child would be Force Sensitive, Yoda gave them two options, give the child up to the Jedi Order or be expelled. Not wanting to be expelled from the Jedi Order, the two ultimately decided to give the child up to them after she gave birth to a son, Joclad, and the pregnancy was covered up for many years. It should be noted that although Dooku held his head up high through the whole ordeal, he held animosity towards the Jedi Order, the Jedi Council and Master Yoda in particular for the rest of his life. Shortly after, in part to move on from the loss of their son, Dooku took Qui-Gon Jinn as his first Padawan and Nu took Kendrew Skywalker as her's. Several years into Jinn's apprenticeship, Dooku and his Padawan were assigned to protect Senator Blix Annon from pirates who were kidnapping senators for ransom. On the senator's ship, Dooku met up with his old friend, Eero Iridian, who was now serving as Blix's aide. Pirates attacked the vessel, exploiting weaknesses in the design, and Blix Annon was kidnapped despite the actions of the two Jedi. During the raid, Dooku recognized one of the pirates as his old friend Lorian Nod and became obsessed with not allowing Nod to win. He neither told his apprentice that he knew the kidnapper nor did he inform the Jedi Council of his failure to protect Senator Annon. Dooku suspected that the security weaknesses and malfunctions on the senator's craft during the battle has been deliberate sabotage, since the craft had recently undergone a security retrofit. He traced the sabotage of the senator's ship back to the responsible factory on the polluted ice world of Von-Alai. With Jinn's help, Dooku discovered that the factory was owned by Caravan, a corporation belonging to Nod that used child labor on its assembly lines. While they were investigating further, Eero Iridian arrived. Telling the Jedi that he'd found a worker willing to talk to them, he lured the pair into an ambush. There, Colicoid Eradicator droids suddenly appeared and threatened the two Jedi. Iridian had betrayed his early friendship with Dooku and was now working for Lorian Nod. Dooku and Jinn were forced to surrender in order to avoid collateral damage to the factory's numerous child workers. They were injected with toxins that paralyzed them and rendered them unconscious. The incapacitated Jedi were subsequently transported to Lorian Nod's headquarters. The two Jedi woke up in an unfamiliar room some time later, restrained by stun cuffs. They had been captured by Nod, who spoke to them and said he planned to hold them until Senator Annon was ransomed. Unfortunately for Nod, the senator died from a sudden heart attack. This panicked Iridian, who rushed into the room where the Jedi were held and began to argue with the pirate leader. During their quarrel, Dooku broke free from his restraints and used the Force to summon his lightsaber through the door Iridian had opened. Dooku then dueled with Nod, intending to kill him. Only Jinn's objection stopped him from slaying his overmatched foe. Instead, Dooku arrested the two pirates and returned to Coruscant with his apprentice. After this final mission, Jinn was ready to face the Jedi Trials. Before the pair parted, Dooku advised Jinn that his need for connection with other beings was dangerous, and betrayal should never catch him by surprise. Jinn passed the Jedi Trials, and became a Jedi Knight. Dooku was a great influence on his Padawan, as Jinn followed Dooku's moral teachings as opposed to Yoda's in later life. As a Jedi Master, Dooku was one of the most highly regarded lightsaber instructors in the Jedi Order. Recordings of Dooku demonstrating lightsaber techniques were recorded on the Great Holocron and became mandatory viewing for two generations of Padawans. In addition, a lecture by Dooku on telekinesis was recorded by Jedi Master Asli Krimsan and preserved in her holocron. In the recording, Dooku described an encounter he had with Master Yoda when he was a Padawan, in which Yoda asked him to move a pot with the Force. While Dooku thought the pot was light, and successfully moved it, it was actually massively heavy. During his time as an instructor within the Jedi Temple, Dooku's teachings on methods for conquering arrogance were also particularly well received. Dooku was offered a place on the Jedi Council, but he turned it down so that he could remain more independent as a proactive peacekeeper. The Council agreed that his skills made him well suited for such field work. Despite this prior refusal, he was later offered another seat and accepted, at his lover Jocasta Nu's urging. Dooku was known as a political idealist and was skilled at resolving disputes throughout the Galaxy. One such intervention was in the Sevarcos Dispute of 28 BJP. Dooku became friends with many younger Jedi, such as Mace Windu and his son Joclad Dooku, whom he served as a mentor to when he was able. Some time later, Dooku was part of a diplomatic envoy aboard a consular ship. However, negotiations failed and fighting broke out, during which, Wilhuff Tarkin, a young member of the Republic Outland Regions Security Force, was seriously injured. Dooku helped save him and they soon became friends and associates. Galidraan Of the many missions Dooku undertook, the deadly skirmish at Galidraan in 15 BJP was the most disastrous. An emergency call for aid by Galidraan's governor against a Mandalorian invasion prompted a swift but ill-prepared Jedi response. Dooku was the senior Jedi Master of the twenty Jedi thrown together for the task force. Unlike most of his companions, he had some knowledge of the enemy they were facing. The governor of Galidraan had hired Jango Fett and his followers, the True Mandalorians, to eliminate a local insurgency that was fighting against him. Fett agreed to destroy them in exchange for the location of his enemy, Pre Vizsla, the leader of the Mandalorian splinter faction known as the Death Watch. However, the governor was secretly working with Vizsla and had no intention of letting Fett live after the task was completed. He decided to use the Jedi to destroy the True Mandalorians, and enlisted their aid by claiming the Mandalorians had invaded and were slaughtering political dissidents. The Death Watch impersonated Fett's forces and murdered noncombatants to further incriminate the True Mandalorians in the eyes of the Jedi. Dooku was aware of the Mandalorians' reputation as warriors and requested reinforcements from the Jedi Council. The urgency of the situation, however, required him to use only his initial task force. The Jedi were given the coordinates of Fett's camp and surrounded it, Dooku demanded their surrender. Instead, Fett ordered the Mandalorians to open fire. The encounter decimated both sides. The battle concluded after the deaths of eleven Jedi and the near-complete destruction of Fett's forces. Fett was captured alive after killing several Jedi with his bare hands. Upon orders from the Jedi Council, Dooku turned Fett over to the planet's governor without further investigation. The governor took Fett's armor and sold him into slavery. While he was at the time unaware of the extent by which the Jedi had been manipulated, Dooku learned shortly thereafter how the Council and the Jedi had been used to further the governor's personal motives. This deeply offended Dooku, and he continued to seek out the full story behind the Galidraan debacle. In 9 BJP Dooku accompanied his lover and Jedi Councillor Jocasta Nu and his former apprentice Qui-Gon Jinn on a mission to his homeworld of Serenno to resolve a dispute in the sector. Clone Wars Leaving the Order After the battles of Galidraan and Baltizaar, Dooku became increasingly withdrawn from the Jedi Order. He refused to accept any more missions from the Jedi Council and became concerned about prophecies he felt were coming true about dark times unfolding across the galaxy. While he discussed his concerns with many of the Order's most prominent Jedi Masters, his longtime lover Jocastu Nu was his closest confidant. Unfortunately, Dooku's concerns seemingly fell on deaf ears, only furthering his disenfranchisement with the Order. He also flirted with the belief that the dark side of the Force could be called upon without personal corruption as his discontent with the Jedi Order grew. After the opening battle of the Civil War, in which his former Padawan Qui-Gon Jinn was killed in a duel with the Sith Darth Maul, Dooku made several public condemnations of the Jedi, the Senate and the Republic in general for not being able to prevent Qui-Gon's death. The Sith's existence was not a surprise to Dooku, as he was one of the few who believed they never truly went away. Convinced that were still more out there, Dooku attempted to bring the matter before the Jedi Council, though they dismissed the idea as less important than the war. For Dooku, this was the final straw, and although he had officially retired from public life, he was by no means idle. Shortly thereafter, Dooku, along with over hundreds of other Jedi, including his son, Joclad, Sora Bulq, Sian Jeisel, K'Kruhk and Tol Skorr refused to fight in the war and resigned from the Jedi Order. Dooku himself retired to Serenno, and claimed his family title of Count. He neither gave a reason for his decision to leave the Jedi in his public announcement nor did he provide one when summoned before the Jedi Council to explain his actions. Dooku's abrupt departure surprised and disturbed the Jedi Order. As a Jedi Master who had voluntarily resigned his commission, Dooku became part of the group later known as the Lost Twenty. Since the Ruusan Reformation, only nineteen other Jedi Masters had walked away from the Order, and among those Dooku was considered the most bitter loss. A bronzium bust of Dooku was created to join the other sculptures of the Lost Twenty in the Jedi Archives. taking with Impressed with his many speeches, the Separatist's began to coalesce around Dooku as their leader. Separatist sentiment indeed soon spread, and on some planets dissatisfaction turned into armed resistance against the Republic. Wanting to learn more about what had happened on Naboo, Dooku approached Viceroy Gunray during his final trial before the Supreme Court. In the midst of their conversation, Gunray accidentally revealed the existence of Sidious to the former Jedi, who then attempted to bring the matter before the Jedi Council, though they dismissed the idea. For Dooku, this was the final straw, and although he had officially retired from public life, he was by no means idle. Rallying the Separatist movement Dooku appeared on Raxus Prime in 5 BJP, commandeering a Republic communications station and giving a speech that heavily criticized the Republic for its decadence, hypocrisy, and corruption and the Jedi Order for it's complacency as well as their coverup of regarding the birth of his son years earlier. Dooku publicly called for entire systems to secede from the Republic and join the Separatist's. Propaganda in Dooku's name flooded communications networks, though much of it could not be directly attributed to him. Dooku himself had a mobile base of operations and no fixed address. Rumored sightings of him were headline news across the Republic. On a mission to the planet Geonosis, he impressed Archduke Poggle the Lesser with his knowledge of ancient Geonosian atmospheric sailing vessels. The Archduke then presented Dooku with a Punworcca 116-class interstellar sloop as a gift. Dooku was pleased with the ship, and acquired an exotic solar sail in the Gree Enclave to install on the vessel. The sail propelled the sloop and allowed it to go to hyperspace without the use of a standard hyperdrive. This distinctive solar sailer remained Dooku's personal craft for the rest of his life. Dooku's hand was silently behind many events in the years leading up to the Clone Wars. On the planet Ryloth, he supported the attempted coup of Twi'lek exile Kh'aris Fenn, with the intent that under Fenn's leadership Ryloth would eventually secede from the Republic. As part of his plan to seize power, Kh'aris Fenn had Clan Secura heir Nat Secura kidnapped. Nat Secura's father was Lon Secura, an influential clan leader and Fenn's enemy. When Jedi Master Tholme was captured trying to rescue the boy heir, Dooku himself intervened to spare the Jedi, as he thought Tholme could be of later use to him. Due to the actions of Tholme, his former apprentice Quinlan Vos, and Twi'lek Jedi Aayla Secura, Kh'aris Fenn did not succeed in usurping control of Ryloth and young Nat Secura was returned to his family. Though the Jedi had prevented Fenn's victory, they remained wholly ignorant of Dooku's role in the matter. As his fame grew, Dooku became a figure of great controversy. An unknown party posted a large illegal bounty for his death, and several bestsellers were written about his rise to prominence in galactic affairs. As the threat of violence spread, the Republic considered the Military Creation Act to better oppose the Separatists with an official Republic military. Pretending to seek peace, Chancellor Palpatine made a public address offering to meet Dooku on Bothawui, but Dooku did not answer. Even as the Separatist movement grew, the Jedi Council did not believe Dooku could be behind the violence that the movement sometimes caused. Creating Grievous As the years passed, Dooku made preparations for war against the Republic. He planned to use the droid armies of the Trade Federation and other corporations, and he needed generals for those armies. Dooku considered a Kaleesh leader named Grievous a candidate due to his skill in warfare, and attempted to enlist Grievous to his cause. Dooku in turn spoke with San Hill of the InterGalactic Banking Clan about recruiting Grievous. Grievous had previously been the head of the Banking Clan's droid army, but had left to fight in a war on his homeworld. Grievous was gravely injured in the explosion of Martyr, and by the time Dooku reached the site of the crash, he was already dying. Only a heart stun preserved his life long enough for him to be transported to Geonosis. What was left of Grievous was encased in a metal body, rebuilding him almost completely. The resulting creation retained only most of the brain, the eyes, and a sack of internal organs from the original Kaleesh. Even Grievous' brain was altered and augmented to make the general a more effective tool of war. He personally trained Grievous in lightsaber combat, turning the cyborg into an expert duelist. Dooku now had a commander to lead droid armies in the upcoming galactic war, something the Count had no desire to do himself. Final preparations As the war drew near, Dooku prepared to make his final preparations before it started. No longer being a Jedi himself, Dooku had Jocasta Nu help him erase Geonosis, Dromund, Mustafar, and thirty-five other star systems from the Jedi Archives. Dooku's next move was to try to arrange the secession of the planet Ansion. Ansion was the hub of a network of minor alliances, including the Malarian Alliance and the Keitumite Mutual Military Treaty. Due to these pacts, Ansion's secession would prompt many other wavering worlds to consider leaving the Republic. Commerce Guild President Shu Mai and Ansion Senator Mousul orchestrated Dooku's plan through various agents, backing the Separatist-inclined Unity of Community government against Ansion's Alwari nomads. The plan failed due to the intervention of Jedi Knights Obi-Wan Kenobi and Luminara Unduli as well as their Padawans Anakin Skywalker and Barriss Offee. In response, Dooku shrugged off the loss and informed Shu Mai that Ansion was not necessary in the grand scheme of the Separatist movement. Shu Mai had also dealt with a small rebellion among the secret supporters of secession in the Commerce Guild. Industrialist Tam Uliss wished to step up the Commerce Guild's plans to bring down the Republic despite Ansion's failure to secede and against Shu Mai's wishes. Shu Mai informed Dooku that she had given Uliss's faction an object lesson by killing Uliss in a staged accident. Dooku was pleased, telling Shu Mai that his own plans were nearing completion. A conspiracy revealed Some of Dooku's allies were more reluctant than others. While on Geonosis, a meeting between Dooku, and the heads of many major business and economic interests, and selected senators took place. Many of these had long been allies of Dooku, such as Commerce Guild head Shu Mai and Archduke Poggle the Lesser. Of the major factions present, the Corporate Alliance, Geonosian Industries, the Commerce Guild, the Techno Union, the InterGalactic Banking Clan, and the Trade Federation became signatories to the treaty to form the Confederacy. Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi, discovered this meeting and attempted to inform the Jedi Council. However, Kenobi was captured by the Geonosians midway through his transmission. He was accused of espionage and thrown into a prison cell. Deciding to interrogate Kenobi personally, Dooku visited the cell where the Jedi was held. The Geonosians had placed Kenobi in a containment field to immobilize him and disrupt his access to the Force. The captive Kenobi immediately accused the Count of treason, but Dooku claimed the Jedi's capture had been a mistake. While questioning the prisoner, Dooku attempted to sway Kenobi to his side, claiming the Republic was incurably corrupt and that Qui-Gon Jinn himself would have joined Dooku if he knew the truth. When Kenobi refused to believe that his former Master would have ever abandoned the Jedi Order and the Republic, Dooku told him that Darth Sidious, a Sith Lord, had control over the Senate. He made one last appeal for Kenobi to defect, saying that together the two of them could destroy the Sith. Kenobi refused the offer. Disappointed, Dooku left the Jedi in his cell and mentioned that it would be difficult to secure his release. On Coruscant, the Jedi received Obi-Wan's transmission, but did not attempt to rescue him right away as they waited for a vote in the Senate on the Republic Army. Because of this, Siri Tachi, a headstrong Jedi who was close friends with Kenobi as well as Dooku's own great granddaughter, decided to rescue him herself. However, shortly upon arrival, she too was captured and placed in the same cell as Kenobi. Dooku then proceeded to interrogate her as well. During their conversation, Dooku attempted to sway his great granddaughter on his side, though she refused. Well aware of who she was, Dooku also told her that he sensed a dark presence both inside her and her bloodline and that she couldn't escape it. Battle of Geonosis Arena bloodbath .]] Obi-Wan Kenobi's transmission to Coruscant had also reached Anakin Skywalker and Senator Padmé Amidala on Tatooine, and the two of them along with Anakin's cousins Luke and Leia attempted to rescue Kenobi despite orders from the Jedi Council to stay put. All four were captured trying to infiltrate the Geonosian stronghold where Kenobi was being held. Dooku offered clemency in return for Amidala supporting the Separatists, but she refused. The would-be rescuers were sentenced to death in the arena by the Geonosians following a quick trial headed by Lord Poggle. Kenobi and Tachi had also been sentenced to death in the same manner, and the six of them met up in the Petranaki arena. They were chained to poles, and an Acklay, a Reek, a Agama and a Nexu were released to devour them. Dooku, Gunray, Poggle the Lesser and others observed from a high balcony, while Geonosian spectators packed the stands. However, the execution did not go precisely as planned, and the six escaped their chains. Gunray was furious that the prisoners weren't dying as planned and ordered someone to shoot them, but Dooku advised patience and countermanded the order. The prisoners were still dodging the arena monsters when the executions were interrupted by the sudden arrival of Jedi reinforcements led by Mace Windu, who surprised Dooku on the balcony, but spoke with him briefly instead of ambushing him. A squad of super battle droids then drove the Jedi Master off the balcony and onto the arena floor. The clones attack Dooku had been anticipating the arrival of the Jedi reinforcements and revealed that the captured Jedi were simply bait for a trap. Ten thousand battle droids awaited Windu's task force, as well as numerous Geonosian warriors. The new Separatist Droid Army of the Confederacy overwhelmed the reinforcements, and many Jedi died while Dooku observed from the balcony. The Count did not join the battle personally, though Jedi Master Coleman Trebor reached the balcony and attempted to attack him, but Jango killed Trebor. After the Jedi had taken significant losses and were trapped in the arena, Dooku ordered the droids to cease fire. He then called on Windu to surrender, but he refused. The remaining Jedi prepared to meet their fate, but their rescue was at hand. Dropships descended from the sky, carrying Yoda and many clone troopers. The Jedi Order had taken command of the clone army that Palpatine had secretly ordered from the planet Kamino, claiming the army was for the Jedi and the Republic. The droids opened fire again, but the reinforcements provided enough cover for the arena survivors to escape onto the dropships. Similar landings took place outside the arena, where Trade Federation core ships had been parked. A clone invasion swept across Geonosis, and the Separatist forces were forced into full retreat. The leadership of the new Confederacy regrouped in the Geonosian command center, and agreed to abandon Geonosis, while Poggle the Lesser commanded his warriors to hide in the catacombs under the Stalgasin hive. Jedi confrontation Dooku himself fled to his secret hangar on a speeder with Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker in close pursuit. They arrived as Dooku was preparing his solar sailer for launch and confronted him. Kenobi instructed Skywalker to be cautious in his approach, but Skywalker charged at Dooku. The young Jedi Padawan was unprepared for Dooku's resulting blast of Force lightning that hit him and telekinetically threw him against the wall of the hangar. Skywalker collapsed to the floor, temporarily incapacitated, leaving Kenobi alone to face Dooku. .]] Kenobi successfully deflected another blast of lightning from Dooku with his lightsaber, but as the duel went on, it became clear he was outmatched in blade-to-blade combat. Toying with his opponent, Dooku slashed Kenobi in the arm, and then the thigh. Incapacitated, Kenobi dropped his blade and fell to the floor. Dooku raised his lightsaber blade for the killing stroke, but before it fell, Skywalker, recovering from his previous injuries, hurtled across the room and parried the blow. Kenobi was too injured to rejoin the fight, but he Force-pulled his lightsaber into grasp and tossed it to Skywalker, who then attacked Dooku with both blades swinging. While Dooku was initially driven back, he adjusted his tactics, forcing Skywalker to retreat and destroying one of his two blades. The duel continued, intensifying, until Dooku found an opening in Skywalker's defense and sliced off his forearm. Victorious against both his opponents, and knowing other Republic forces would arrive, Dooku made his escape in his Geonosian solar sailer. He proved to be right, as seconds later, clone troopers led by Padmé Amidala arrived in the hangar. Early conflicts Convincing of the Son In the wake of the Battle of Geonosis and the beginning of the Clone Wars, Dooku returned to his homeworld of Serenno. There, a confederate ship containing his Jedi son, Joclad, who was in a bacta tank recovering from injuries sustained during the Battle of Geonosis, was there waiting for his arrival. Dooku then had his son, still inside the bacta tank, moved into his castle until fully recovered. After healing some, Dooku spoke to his son, who was confused where he was. During their conversation, Dooku admitted that he was his father and that Madame Jocasta Nu was his mother. At first, Joclad refused to believe him, and engaged the Count in a brief lightsaber duel, however, Dooku, while still fatigued from the events on Geonosis, easily defeated his son, as he was still too weak from his injuries, but saw promise in his son's skill. Dooku then said that he would train his son if he joined him. After his son's refusal for a second time, Dooku pleaded with him one last time, telling him of the corruption within the Jedi Order, the Republic, and that Master Yoda had forced them to give him to the order as an infant. With that slew of information, Joclad accepted his offer. Dooku then gave him a new lightsaber to replace the one he lost on Geonosis. Joclad would go on to become his most trusted and loyal ally. Duel on Bakura Shortly after, Dooku headed to his secret base on Bakura to regroup the scattered Separatist forces, while Joclad remained behind as he was still not fully recovered. However, Jedi Master Tholme anticipated Dooku's journey to Bakura, and lay in wait with Vaapad master Sora Bulq. The pair hoped to capture the Dark Jedi, and confronted Dooku. The three combatants engaged in a ferocious lightsaber duel, during which Dooku used Force lightning to take down Bulq. He then tried to bring Tholme over to the dark side, but Tholme refused. Dooku attacked Tholme, viciously stabbing through his shoulder and back before removing the Jedi's left eye. Finally, Dooku brought the roof down upon Tholme, leaving him under a vast pile of rubble. He then left with the unconscious body of Sora Bulq. Dooku tended to Bulq's wounds and converted him to the dark side of the Force through persuasion. Sora Bulq would become a loyal ally to Dooku and a valuable asset for the Confederacy during the war. The Count dispatched Bulq to rescue the injured Tholme from the rubble, so that Bulq would be able to work within the Jedi Temple on Dooku's behalf without suspicion. Artifacts and war machines Shortly after, the Confederacy acquired was a new type of war machine, the Decimator. These Decimators were stolen from the Republic due to their potential to swing the war against the Separatists. The machines were captured by Dooku's most trusted general, Sev'rance Tann, on the planet Eredenn Prime. Tann was a Chiss Force-user and a skilled tactician who had served Dooku since before the Battle of Geonosis. Dooku ordered her to invade and capture the Republic energy world of Sarapin with her army. While Tann succeeded in capturing the world, she did not hold it for long. The Republic struck back, retaking Sarapin and later defeating and killing Tann at the Battle of Krant. A new ally Two months after the Battle of Geonosis, Dooku traveled to The Cauldron, a gladiatorial arena on Rattatak. He was hoping to find a new servant to carry out his wishes. Upon his arrival, he was greeted by his host and taken to watch the contest. He soon sensed a disturbance in the Force as Asajj Ventress, a Dathomirian warlord, silently assassinated his guide, seeking to impress him. Dooku praised her skills, but told her he wasn't looking for a spy. Ventress then jumped down into the arena, slaughtering the other gladiators under Dooku's watchful gaze. When she had finished, Dooku applauded her, telling her she was more powerful than he had sensed. Ventress claimed in turn to be a Sith, but Dooku laughed at her before leaping into the arena and denying her claim. Ventress angrily attacked Dooku, but before she could reach him he incapacitated her with Force lightning. Dooku brought the unconscious Ventress to a room on Rattatak and waited for her to wake up. When she did, he attacked her as she was exploring her surroundings and they engaged in a vicious lightsaber duel across the room, taunting her as they fought. Ventress was skilled, and proved to be a challenge. However, Dooku brought her down, disarming her of her two lightsabers and then sundering the weapons. Ventress admitted defeat, but instead of killing his opponent, he sent her on a mission to find and kill Anakin Skywalker. Dooku was confident that she would quickly dispatch Skywalker. Asajj Ventress would encounter Skywalker many times throughout the Clone Wars, though she never did succeed in killing him. She also served Dooku as a commander and acolyte. Rallying the Confederacy During the first few months of the Clone Wars, Dooku spent much of his time inciting systems to rebel and preparing strategies against the Republic. Commander Merai, a Mon Calamari idealist and one of the Confederacy's best tacticians, planned an assault on the planet Kamino to wipe out the cloning facilities. Jedi Knight Aayla Secura discovered this planned attack, and relayed the information to the Republic. The Republic fleet ambushed the Confederacy's ships and destroyed many of them. Furthermore, Merai was killed and his fleet routed. Despite the losses the CIS sustained, Dooku pressed on, though, he regretted the loss of Merai. Dooku built a cadre of Dark Acolytes. Along with his son, Joclad, Asajj Ventress, Sev'rance Tann and Sora Bulq, Dooku enlisted his former Jedi apprentice Tol Skorr and former Jedi Kadrian Sey, as well as other Force-users such as Trenox and Saato. On the galactic scale of the war, Dooku's charisma swayed many to the Confederate cause. Whole star systems pledged themselves to the Separatist cause on the former Jedi's words alone. In addition to his Force adepts, Dooku recruited warriors like the Gen'Dai mercenary Durge to augment the Confederacy's already potent arsenal. Even the Jedi Order was not initially united against the Separatists, as a few Jedi even joined Dooku's forces, while others had refused to join their comrades in the war. One Jedi allied with Dooku, Sora Bulq, exploited the Republic's ignorance over his true allegiance and attempted to convince more Jedi to ally with the Separatists at a meeting at his family estate on the moon of Ruul. This plot to divide the Jedi failed due to the intervention of Mace Windu, who unmasked Bulq as a traitor. Sian Jeisel, one of the wavering Jedi Bulq had invited to Ruul, even agreed to lead clones in the war. She and two other Jedi, Masters Bultar Swan and Tsui Choi, were on a Republic troopship that was captured by Dooku's forces. The Jedi expected to be killed, but Dooku unexpectedly ordered their release, claiming that all Jedi were his brothers and sisters. Bulq questioned him about this approach in private, and Dooku said that the purpose was to sow dissension among the Jedi, and that even mercy had its uses. Three months after the death of Sev'rance Tann, his favored general, Dooku had yet to replace her as the leader of his armies. To choose a successor, he pitted Commanders Ventress, Durge, and General Grievous against each other on the Trenchant space station. Grievous was more than a match for his two opponents, even though they worked together against him. Dooku rewarded the cyborg with command of the Confederacy's armies, while Ventress and Durge were left to recuperate in a bacta tank. Grievous proved a worthy choice as Supreme Commander. He was revealed to the Jedi on Hypori to devastating effect, outmaneuvering five Jedi at once. His emergence as the commander of the Confederacy's droid armies changed the course of the war from then on, and he slew many Jedi personally. Personality and Traits Master Jard Dooku was an accomplished philosopher, orator, politician, and warrior, regarded as one of the greatest Jedi ever for his strength of character and his strength in the Force. Yoda considered him both the Temple's greatest student and one of his greatest failures. By the time of the Clone Wars, Dooku had been a practitioner of the Force for nearly eight decades. Even as a youngling, Dooku felt driven to succeed. He was fully devoted to the ideals of the Jedi Order and the ideal of service to the galaxy. He sought to become a great Jedi Master, and did not even consider the possibility of a life outside the Order, though he knew of his heritage as a nobleman and at times felt self-conscious about it. Dooku chose Padawans he thought had the potential to become great Jedi themselves, and endeavored to teach them all he knew. Dooku had at least two romantic relationships, one was with, Galilahi, with whom he had a daughter, Sitsi, and the second was with fellow Jedi, Jocasta Nu, with whom he had a son, Joclad. His Padawan Komari Vosa also had an infatuation with him. This was one of the factors that led to his recommendation that she be dismissed from the Jedi Order. Dooku held very high expectations of government as a Jedi, and was perceived by his peers as a political idealist. He became increasingly disillusioned with the Republic in the period before his defection from the Jedi Order, and eventually held the opinion that the Jedi betrayed themselves by serving the politicians. In particular, he was highly critical of the Council's handling of the Battles of Galidraan, Baltizaar and Naboo. The Jedi Council's perceived betrayal of the ideals of the Order greatly influenced Dooku in his belief that the Jedi Order should embrace the dark side. Dooku did not ever forgive betrayal easily. An encounter as a Jedi Knight with Lorian Nod, his former friend who had once tried to frame him, nearly led to Nod's death. However, his Padawan Qui-Gon Jinn successfully appealed to Dooku's honor as a Jedi, and Dooku relented. He was also a connoisseur of alien art and antiquities. Powers and Abilities Before his resignation, Jard Dooku was known as one of the most skilled duelists and lightsaber instructors in the Jedi Order. Along with Yoda, Dooku was one of only two Jedi who were known to have bested Mace Windu at sparring, and during the time of the Confederacy Crisis, it was said that aside from Yoda, only Windu would have been his equal on neutral ground. Though styles like Form I, Form III, and Form V were more practical in the age of blasters, Dooku's competitive spirit drove him toward the second form of lightsaber combat, Makashi, though he maintained a working knowledge of other forms as well. In combat, he used his bladework to redirect and deflect, rather than attempting to meet his opponent head-on, fending off enemies with a minimal expenditure of energy before unleashing rapid and devastating counters. As per Makashi training regiments, Dooku relied heavily on his footwork to outmaneuver his enemy, basing himself on balance, back-and-forth charges, and sudden retreats. His skill in Form II was such that he could hold his own against up to four opponents with little difficulty. He was one of a very few practitioners of dueling-centric Makashi in the Order at the time, and unmatched in his mastery of it. Later in life, Dooku learned the art of Dun Möch, a tactic that focused on disrupting an opponent's concentration by the use of psychological warfare. His most notable usages of the technique were against Anakin Skywalker. However, each time he applied it, it backfired, and he only encouraged Skywalker to draw on his anger, which more often than not spurred him on to victory. His attempt during his final duel with Skywalker onboard the Invisible Hand was nearly successful, though it backfired, as his taunts only encouraged Skywalker to fall into a rage and break through Dooku's defenses. Category:Character Category:Jedi Category:Jedi Masters Category:Males Category:Humans Category:Force-Sensitives Category:Inhabitants of Coruscant Category:Dark Jedi Category:House of Dooku Category:Separatist leadership Category:Confederacy individuals